On the occasion of International Rural Women’s Day 2025, celebrated under the theme “Investing in rural women: accelerating food security and climate resilience”, the Feminist Climate Action in West Africa (ACF-AO) project is honoring the strength, ingenuity and leadership of rural women in the coastal areas of Côte d’Ivoire.
In the localities of Adiaké, Jacqueville, Grand-Lahou and Grand-Bassam, these women mobilize every day to protect their environment, improve their families’ food security and strengthen their communities’ resilience to the effects of climate change.
Concrete action for nature and people
The impacts of climate change are being severely felt in coastal areas: land erosion, soil salinization, disappearance of mangroves and loss of livelihoods. Faced with this reality, rural women, with the support of the ACF-AO project, are becoming the true guardians of ecosystems.
In Grand-Lahou, they are reforesting mangroves, the maritime forests that protect coastlines and shelter aquatic fauna. In Jacqueville, they process fish using solar ovens and clean technologies, reducing deforestation and smoke emissions. In Adiaké and Grand-Bassam, they adopt sustainable farming practices that preserve soil fertility and promote food security.
Investing in rural women: an imperative for a sustainable future
This year’s theme resonates deeply with the mission of the ACF-AO project: to put women at the heart of the ecological transition and sustainable development.
Investing in rural women means investing in local, effective and sustainable solutions. It means giving them the means to act, to decide and to transform their living conditions while protecting natural resources.
Thanks to the support of INADES-Formation and SUCO, with the backing of the Government of Canada, these women are benefiting from training, equipment and institutional support, enabling them to become major players in the process of change. Their commitment proves that the fight against climate change is first and foremost a matter of empowering women economically, socially and environmentally.
Towards a fairer, greener and more resilient Côte d’Ivoire
The initiatives supported by the ACF-AO project demonstrate that when rural women are supported and valued, communities become stronger, more autonomous and more supportive. Today, they are the faces of climate resilience in Côte d’Ivoire.
On International Rural Women’s Day, let’s honor these courageous women who cultivate the future, restore nature and embody the hope of a more equitable world.
Service communication – INADES-Formation Secrétariat Général
